The Major Airlines that want to save the regionals will end up just creating ab-initio. Some have already started this process like United and their Aviate Academy. The one missing link is who is paying for training.

It’s not hard to see a future where United (or insert airline) pays for all or most of your training. Maybe students have to show up with a PPL, but United pays for the rest. You then instruct at their Academy until hitting the ATP mins, then go to the regional of their choice where you are contracted for 5-7 years before you can move up to the big boys.

That would solve their staffing problems, but the cost of paying for initial training is a huge hurdle that hasn’t really been necessary in this country yet. It will be interesting to see what plays out.

That MIGHT solve the strategic problem but it won’t solve the tactical one - which is too many pilots leaving the regionals before they have upgraded and flown enough to pay back the 121 SIC hours they got from the regional.

Right now they are looking at mandatory upgrades on FOs who don’t WANT to upgrade (unless you give them the additional stripe as a ‘participation’ trophy) and paying huge bonuses and salaries for DECs. And they are running out of potential DECs.

Barring a recession and/or a change in the 1000 hr upgrade rule they are in trouble.

I got a better idea. Let the airlines pay, on a continual long term basis, what the market requires to hire that experience. Problem solved.

The airlines, and their previous compensation packages, resulted in the current hiring environment (along with new people clamoring to get in through short cuts). We don't need to change safety regulations to fix the problem the airlines created.

Well the ab-initio pipeline would most certainly require the pilot to upgrade to Captain as part of their contract.

And what he’s saying is they need captains to tactically fill the gap until the strategic ab initio plan grows new ones from seed. The system still falls apart otherwise.

Barring a major recession; UA and DL could hire all of the AA regional pilots in the next five years while AA could hire all the UA or DL regional feed. This doesn’t even include the LCCs with their own hiring needs for growth and attrition.

Or the ACMIs.

Would such a contract be enforceable?

Kind of a silly question. Are forced upgrades enforceable if it’s in the pilot contract?

this has often been discussed on APC before. Some are, some apparently aren’t, depending on the contract and the state you are employed in.

https://www.airlinepilotforums.com/a...-contract.html

https://www.airlinepilotforums.com/a...ract-help.html

And, a confused bit of case law…

https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-n...aining-lawsuit

So maybe not all that silly…